Introduction
An ecosystem is made up of various plants and animals. Biodiversity refers to the diversity of life forms found in an ecosystem. Furthermore, biodiversity is divided into species diversity, genetic diversity, and ecological diversity. Each person has a unique genetic makeup, determined by heredity or genes. Genetic diversity means the population adapts to changing surroundings. Genes evolve based on environmental conditions and allow communities and individuals to survive difficult situations and reproduce to keep the species alive. In this article, genetic diversity is well explained.
What Is Genetic Diversity?
Genetic diversity is defined as genetic variations within organisms or species. The recombination of genetic material produces it during the inheritance process. Genetic diversity refers to how an organism adapts to changing environments. It changes over time and space. Sexual reproduction is vital for preserving genetic variation because it produces unique offspring by combining the parents' genes. Genetic drift, gene flow, and gene mutation are the factors that contribute to genetic diversity.
What Are the Examples of Genetic Diversity?
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One of the best examples of genetic diversity is the different breeds of dogs due to selective breeding.
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Different varieties of wheat, rose flowers, etc., are some of the other examples.
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In India, there are more than a thousand varieties of mangos and more than 50,000 types of rice.
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The amount of chemical reserpine produced by various medicinal plant varieties Rauvolfia vomitoria found in Himalayan ranges. These all are examples of genetic diversity.
Why Is Genetic Diversity Important?
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Individuals within a species can better adapt to challenging environmental circumstances because of genetic diversity. It gives rise to many physical characteristics of the individual and the ability to adjust to stress, diseases, and unfavorable environmental conditions.
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Human interventions and natural factors cause a variety of changes in the environment. It results in natural selection and survival of the fittest. As a result, genetic diversity causes the susceptible types to die and the adaptable ones to survive.
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Genetic variety is vital for maintaining distinct variations of genes that may be resistant to pests, illnesses, or other conditions in a healthy population.
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Cross-breeding (a process of genetically modifying plants) of distinct genetic variants can result in new plant varieties with desirable features such as disease resistance and enhanced tolerance to stress.
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Genetic diversity minimizes the occurrence of unwanted inherited traits.
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Genetic diversity ensures that a species has at least some survivors.
How Is Genetic Diversity Generated?
Mutation refers to changes in an individual's DNA (deoxyribo nucleic acid). It occurs when mistakes are made while cells copy DNA , similar to when a word is copied incorrectly. These mutations make up the genetic diversity of a species. Most mutations are either harmful or have no effect at all, but sometimes they can result in beneficial changes to a species. Individuals with these beneficial mutations may have a higher chance of survival and have more children. Adaptation is how a species adapts to thrive better in its environment. When parents have a baby, the child's DNA combines elements from both parents. Therefore, every gene in a baby's DNA has two copies, one from each parent. Nowadays, genetic testing methods are employed to detect mutations in the child's genetic makeup, which has found it's application in identifying genetic diseases aiding in early diganosis and treatment.
Gene copies with distinct mutations are called alleles. Mutations result in different forms of a gene. Each gene has two alleles in many species, one from each parent.
New combinations of alleles are produced in newborns when the rearranged alleles from a father and a mother are combined during mixing of sperm and eggs. Mixing alleles create new combinations of mutations and features, increasing the genetic diversity of a species. However, not all species require a mother and a father to have a child. For example, bacteria can clone themselves and pass their alleles directly from one identical clone to its parent. As a result, the clone will inherit all the DNA flaws present in its parents. In addition, bacteria can give alleles to each other even though they are unrelated. This novel method allows basic animals like bacteria to expand their genetic makeup without depending on the mixing of parental alleles.
What Are The Factors Involved In Genetic Diversity?
Genetic diversity is governed by four factors: mutation, genetic drift, gene flow, and natural selection. But only genetic changes can result in whole new alleles.
Mutations: Mutations are changes to the DNA's nucleotide sequence. The replacement or alteration of genes and chromosomes is the primary cause of mutations. New alleles created by mutations can alter the genetic makeup of a population. It can develop in either somatic or gametophytic cells in multicellular organisms (gametes).
Genetic Drift: Genetic drift is a random variation in a population's frequency of a specific allele from generation to generation caused by chance sampling events. It is less noticeable in large populations.
Gene Flow: Gene flow preserves genetic variation among populations and aids the evolutionary process by allowing genes to migrate between populations with varying allele frequencies.
Natural Selection: Natural selection is a process whereby the population's gene pool evolves due to the reproduction of people who can withstand environmental changes. It is a key strategy for population adaptability to changing environmental factors in evolution.
What Is the Conservation of Genetic Diversity?
There are numerous threats to genetic diversity. As a result, the global community is preserving all forms of biodiversity, particularly species' genetic diversity. Conservation genetics seeks to conserve genetic diversity at various levels while assessing and monitoring population conservation plans. Their primary focus is on preserving several factors that affect genetic diversity, such as patterns of genetic variation, species, populations, and genotypes. In the short term, preserving genetic diversity keeps a species' ability to reproduce, but in the long term, it keeps a species' ability to adapt and change.
What Is the Purpose of Genetic Diversity Conservation?
The most convenient approach to gene conservation for a species depends on the local characteristics, population genetic makeup, and extent of the geographic range. The primary goal of conservation genetics is to preserve genetic diversity in rare species. Three components work together to facilitate the conservation of genetic variety:
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Establishing the goal of conservation.
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Understanding the genetic diversity of populations.
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Implementing conservation techniques into practice.
What Are the Methods Used to Conserve Genetic Diversity?
There are some methods for conserving genetic diversity -
In-situ Conservation: It is challenging to conserve all biodiversity; hence, some "hotspots" are identified and preserved to save species that are endemic to a certain ecosystem and are endangered, threatened, or threatened with extinction. National parks and wildlife sanctuaries are two examples of in situ conservation.
Ex-situ Conservation: Threatened plants and animals are removed from their natural habitats and housed in particular environments where they are given specialized care and protection. For example, zoos, wildlife safaris, and botanical gardens.
Other methods of conservation are the following:
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Gametes of endangered species are stored in viable and fertile conditions by using cryopreservation methods.
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Eggs can be fertilized in vitro, and plants can be propagated by tissue culture.
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A recent development to preserve genetic diversity is the genomic library.
Conclusion
Genetic diversity must be protected by preserving the surviving wild populations. In addition, it is essential to unite wild species by creating environmental preserves and wildlife overpasses and rebuilding habitats, which will increase the size of the wild population. These strategies, when combined, have the potential to help stop the loss of genetic diversity. It is essential to protect and maintain genetic diversity as it serves as the foundation for healthy species.
